According to family folklore, my grandmother refused to speak to my mother for a week when, once married, she opted for a simple window treatment with no swags or valances in sight. You have guessed it, my granny was never a modernist. As a child, I used to find her place rather pompous and heavy. Imagine then my surprise when I started noticing trimmings and tassel everywhere - and liking them. Grannies' fringes are having a moment, though they look anything but old - think Dimore Studio and their flair for combining contemporary elements to a certain nostalgia for the past. Does that mean I'll be switching to swags in my next projects? Never say never...

Having missed the last two editions of Euroluce, no wonder this year's was the highlight of my Milanese week. Like any good accessory on simpler outfits, the right light fixture can lift even the most linear project to a different level. Lighting can be decorative, entertaining, sculptural or simply very clever but it does the trick. Some of my favourite finds in the gallery below. For more lightastic inspiration, please visit my dedicated Pinterest board by clicking here.

Better late than never, I'm posting some pictures from the Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair, which ran at the Royal Arsenal from the 17th to the 20th November.

The Concept Room, designed by EFR Interiors in collaboration with Paint and Paper Library London, showcased in a living room setting gorgeous prints curated by the Brocket Gallery. For more information on the artists and the Fair itself, click here

Successful interiors manage to communicate the nature of people living in them. If clients hold back for some reason, or aspire to something they're not, their space inevitably becomes soulless or, worse, fake.

I found some pictures of Donald Trump's houses and I can't help thinking what terrible damage he'd do to the White House...

In decoration, as in life, association brings powerful advantages. When something ceases to be a unit to become a family, acquires strength and visibility. So, even the meaningless and the mundane, when grouped, can turn into something worth looking at. Whether by mere repetition or audacious juxtaposition, whether structured or organic, assortments of art pieces but also everyday objects become a more complex narrative that, inevitably, catches the eye and entertains. A few examples of the most disparate nature below. For more inspiration, visit my board on Pinterest by clicking here.

It takes some effort for a chromophiliac like me to live life in black and white. However, working on a Scandinavian inspired scheme for a client, I'm discovering the joys of monochrome. The resulting space is soft, bright and serene, rich with textures and punctuated with black accents.

My antidote to S.A.D., and the overbearing greyness outside my window, is to seek refuge in my imagination. Dreams, fairy tales, nature: all these elements have the power of enchanting and distracting us from the predictability our daily lives. How can we resist bringing a little whimsical to our interiors?

A flying visit to Maison et Objet where, amongst many other delights, I have noticed an enthusiastic use of a colour I love: celadon. Fresh, soft and relaxing - the perfect antidote to the grim times we live in. Bring it on!

The last thing a born and bred Torinese would ever do, it's to blow its own trumpet. However, I feel that, after all the years away from my hometown, I'm allowed to sing its praise a little. Torino is beautiful, of a subtle, somewhat secretive, sort of beauty. Sophisticated and elegant, poised and subversive, always delicious. Its wide avenues lined with plane trees and galleries, with myriads of secret courtyards leading off them, the explosions of baroque behind its deceptively simple facades, have shaped my perception of the world: call it an inescapable aesthetical imprinting.

So there you have it: my unapologetic declaration of love for la mia Torino, a city full of wonderful architecture by visionary architects, past present and future, inside and out.

Spring has sprung and, with Easter looming, the picnic season is about to start. Not sure about the weather? Just kit yourselves out with a good rug like Fatboy Picnic Lounge. Enjoy the great outdoors (and don't forget a hat).

When you grow up, like me, with the Alps as a backdrop, it is difficult to ignore their call. After years away, I'm finally heading back to the slopes for an overdose of skiing and glorious winter light on the snow. In the anticipation, I'll indulge in a little gallery of chalet chic, an all time favourite of mine.

The many charms of Barcelona are well known, but after a gorgeous few days in the Catalan capital, I have been reminded why I always thought I could very happily live there. Highlights from my trip below:

September is always a month of reassessment as well as a great month for interior design, thanks to an array of trade shows to choose from. Pops of colour were brightening the London Design Festival and those "back to school" blues - some favourites in the gallery below.